Looking for a pair of complimentary humbuckers for hard rock/heavy metal

[PFDarkside]

What’s up guys? Hope you are all well.

I’m planning a dual build of Warmoth’s based on the limited Flake release at Thanksgiving. It’ll be a Strat with 2 post and Tele, both are H/H, the Tele uses the Gotoh Humbucker tele bridge.

These guitars are going to be like “brothers” with the same look, just different shapes and I’m looking for different, but complimentary H/H sets. I want to be able to set up a tone, record a track then double track with the alternate guitar, so a couple of rhythm tones that stack well together. Also want a singing lead, one neck that can do crisp cleans and one that can do smooth creamy leads.

Initially I’m thinking of tones like Campbell on Holy Diver, Jake E. Lee on Bark at the Moon, Warren Di Martini on Out of the Cellar, maybe a little EVH on 1984 and early Crüe.

The easy choice is JB/Jazz and Super Distortion and PAF Pro, but I want a single manufacturer for a special color combo. If I go all Duncan than JB/Jazz and either Custom/59 or DD/DD seems to fit the bill. However I’ve already got a JB/Jazz I’m using in another guitar. I also don’t want to discount the 78/78 and I’ve been intrigued by the Black Winters and the Pegasus/Sentient as they seem like the modern versions of the DD/DD and JB/Jazz.

Anyway, where would you go from here?
(Sorry for the ultra compressed pics, I forgot to grab them while they were available)

 

[Mincer]

For special guitars, I'd go with a special pickup set. What about the Concept set, or the Eclairs?

 

[Top-L]

Black Winters and the Pegasus/Sentient as they seem like the modern versions of the DD/DD and JB/Jazz.

They keep recycling ideas over and over with new marketing.

That said, the most impressive Dimarzios I have used are the Crunch Lab / Liquifire set. I guess you could argue that the Cruch Lab is like a modern Distortion. Dimarzio has a ton of John Petrucci collab pickups and all of them I have tried are great. Its like over the past 40 years they have learned how to accentuate all the important frequencies without any jank. You can play all the classic metal songs, but they also solo better.

I vote for trying something new unless your parts box already has stuff you like.

I would like to try the Pegasus/Sentient but I suspect it isnt that different than the Cruch Lab / Liquifire.

 

[PFDarkside]

For special guitars, I'd go with a special pickup set. What about the Concept set, or the Eclairs?

That is a great idea. I hadn’t thought about those.

 

[amdkj]

The examples you gave weren't recorded with anything fancy, so unless you want to be different just for the sake of being different, I'd stick to fairly common designs.

For SDs I'd start with a Custom and either a 59, Jazz, or Pearly Gates, depending on what necks you're putting on these; for a bright neck I'd go PG, for a warm one I'd go with the Jazz, and the 59 is the balanced option. They're all fairly smooth. (But with enough definition for high distortion.) Even though it's a slightly later pickup (I think?), I feel the Custom does the late-70s-to-mid-80s sound a touch more authentically than the JB. (Possibly I just associate the JB too much with 90s music.) And you do have a JB and Jazz, anyway. Then for the alternate set, if you want more power go for the Distortion pair, or for something a little lighter get the Full Shred set. The Distortion and Full Shred neck pickups are both on the 'crisper' side.

In the world of DiMarzio I think the Super Distortion and PAF Pro are a no-brainer for a standard option. For alternates, I like the Breed (neck) and Air Norton as smoother versions of the general PAF Pro sound, and the Evo 2 as a slightly calmer alternative to the Super Distortion; kind of like how I feel the Custom is newer yet more classic-sounding than the actual classic JB, the Evo 2 is also obviously newer than the Super Distortion yet sounds like it should have come before it.

If we throw out matching brands (and not knowing what necks you'll use) then my top choice for these sounds would be the Super Distortion and Breed for the most straight-forward route to those sounds, and the Full Shred set as the alternate; much less bass and more definition in the bridge, which will stop the double-tracking from getting muddled, and the 'crisp' neck opposing the Breed's smoothness.

Black Winters are sort of halfway between Distortions and Invaders, to me, but I've only tried them in Les Pauls so obviously you'll be working with quite a different base tone than I was. I had a Pegasus and Sentient in a 7-string; the Pegasus was indistinguishable from a C5 and the Sentient seemed to just be a Jazz, but I don't know if the 6-string versions are any different.

 

[Top-L]

Also want a singing lead, one neck that can do crisp cleans and one that can do smooth creamy leads.

I mentioned it earlier in the thread, but here is a comparison between a Super Distortion and Crunch Lab, if you go with Dimarzio. From this demo you can tell they are very similar. The Crunch Lab has a bit less bass and more mid definition. These Petrucci pickups are amazing for lead guitar playing yet not that different from classic designs. I think the CL/Liquifire combo is the modern day equivalent of SD/Paf Pro.

(The Liquifire is similar to the PAF Pro in neck, but seems a bit more focused for lead playing.)

I think for rhythm playing they would be functionally identical. For leads the CL/LF combo will be a step above.

 

[AdrianSD]

The Black Winter set might sound too modern for the tones @PFDarkside has in mind. JB with RCA5 in the bridge has been my favourite recently, with a 59 in neck it's a pretty good combo. From the Dimarzio camp, Gravity storm neck is an absolutely killer pickup, works great for creamy leads.

 

[Chistopher]

What does "modern" mean anymore? I used to think it meant scooped mids with high bandwidth, but I feel thats getting a little dated

 

[zizyphus]

Some bridge PUPs I've tried that really thread the needle between modern and classic are the SD Perpetual Burn and the Dimarzio Air Norton (in the bridge, not the neck). I think they would absolutely fit the bill.

I also think that if you did one in the bridge position of each guitar, they would complement each other quite well. The Air Norton is a little more rounded and "singing" than the Perpetual Burn, which has a bit more bite.

If you are ok with magnet swaps, the world is your oyster. I personally love the Pegasus with either an A8 or a ceramic magnet swap. I also think a lot of Burstbuckers benefit from an A8 for a meaty, heavier, modern tone.

As far as nailing Campbell's Holy Diver tone, BKP makes a Holy Diver set, which I'd hope comes close I've never tried it, but its fairly explicitly their take on the JB/Jazz combo. The DCR is substantially different, so I'd imagine they're not just JB/Jazz imitations, but updates. BKP also lets you make fun, cosmetically interesting choices if you order directly from them (though it will cost you...)

A cheaper route is Dragonfire pickups, specifically the Phat Screamers in the bridge. I've spent plenty of cash on fancier brands, but I've gotta say, the Phat Screamers really hold up if you want think, hot rodded bridge tones. They're pretty cheap, and you can buy a variety of bobbin colors to match your aesthetic if you want. Might be worth trying since you won't be out that much $$$ if you end up not liking them.